THE EMPEROR'S NEW GROOVERated G - Running Time: 1:19 - Released 12/15/00
Disney can never seem to miss these days when it comes to animated
features, and Mark Dindal's The Emperor's New Groove is
the latest in the chain of Mouse House productions to prove this
point. It's cute, it's funny, it teaches a lesson, and it features
well-realized characterizations by well-known actors. This time,
the lead role is played by the ultra-sarcastic David Spade, nicely
counterpointed by the always reliable John Goodman, and the script
by Dindal, Roger Allers, and several others is programmed to exploit
the talents of these two actors as well as that of Eartha Kitt
and Seinfeld's Patrick Warburton as the diabolical but
clumsy villainess and her thick-necked, common sense challenged
assistant. Like Tarzan, the film
has none of the traditional Disney musical numbers, but features
the music of one of rock's most well-known songwriters. In that
film it was Phil Collins; this time, it's Sting.

Kuzco (voice of Spade) is the young emperor of some Mezzo-American
country several hundred years ago (as with most kids' movies,
the period setting is a tad muddled). Apparently with no parents
and no authority figures around him to squelch his style, Kuzco
relishes his kingly life, even planning to build a fabulous summer
home called "Kuzcotopia" on a beautiful hilltop near
the palace. This is unfortunate for Pacha (Goodman), a poor villager
and herder of llamas, because his house sits precisely on the
site of the future royal playground. When Pacha goes to the emperor
to ask where he and his neighbors are supposed to live, Kuzco
answers characteristically: "Um...don't know, don't care."

What Kuzco also does not know is that his lead advisor Yzma
(Kitt) has plans to take over the kingdom by poisoning the young
ruler and assuming power herself. But because of a mixup with
the potion prepared by her trusty sidekick Kronk (Warburton),
the emperor doesn't die when he drinks the stuff; instead, he
turns into a llama. However, he escapes the palace and disappears
into the countryside, where he again meets up with Pacha. Now,
despite their initial disagreement, the two must work together
to return the emperor to his rightful throne and save the kingdom
from Yzma's evil clutches.

This is a classic buddy movie, and each actor is staying strictly
close to his established range of character. The scriptwriters
obviously tailored the text to Spade's ascerbic style, and he
is right at home playing a spoiled twentysomething. Goodman is
also very comfy playing the straight man with the heart of gold,
and Warburton occasionally steals the scene as the non-chalant
but devoted Kronk. The script doesn't exactly sparkle the way
many recent Disney cartoons have, however, and the animation,
while perfectly servicable, is not particularly dazzling, either.
For some reason, this film feels rushed through, like the conventional
animation pictures are becoming a kind of filler between the computer-animated
Pixar releases. This film doesn't hold a candle to A
Bug's Life or the Toy Story movies, of course,
but even up against older films like Aladdin and Beauty
And The Beast it seems a bit lacking, even from the standpoint
of screenplay or characterization. It's not bad, it's just not
astounding. This is perhaps the curse of producing the kind of
top-notch films Disney has become associated with: once that level
is reached, it becomes expected, and while New Groove would
have been a groundbreaking masterpiece 10 years ago, by today's
standards it seems somewhat . . . pedestrian. ****